We’ve gotten a lot accomplished in the past few weeks – I’m surprised! Or should I not be surprised? LOL. I’m a pretty impatient person, usually.

First things first – we completed our puzzle fundraiser to help us with our journey to three via gestational carrier/surrogacy! Wahoo! We are extremely blessed and thankful for everyone’s support – & pleasantly surprised by it. Thank you so much, to all of you, that donated and/or shared our post. If you’re still interested, there’s a couple people that gave larger donations that are willing to give up some puzzle pieces. So if you’re interested please click here!

Our GC (gestational carrier) had a phone call with our surrogacy coordinator from the agency as sort of an “introduction” and what to expect. Our GC goes for her doctor appointments near the end of this month and we should know in the next few weeks if she is approved as a match for us – we suspect that there should be no problem at all – yay!

So, now what? 

I had cycle day 1 on August 10th and I had to go to my clinic on day 2 to update my labs for E2 (estrogen), AMH (anti-mullerian hormone), and FSH (follicle stimulating hormone). All tests came back great – my E2 was 14; FSH was 5.9, and AMH was 7.49.

Because my husband & I are using my egg and his sperm, my fertility clinic treats us as if we are “donors” – totally makes sense. We need to follow all the procedures that normal donors would go through and all are required via the FDA. I had my physical with my RE and blood work done on Wednesday. The physical was very similar to my typical appointment with my OB – but I can’t say it was enjoyable. LOL.

The FDA blood work is good for 30 days and the physical is good for 6 months.

All tests came back negative!

Although, I wasn’t worried. Here is what I was tested for:

• HIV
• Hepatitis C
• Hepatitis B
• Hepatitis B Core
• Syphilis
• Gonorrhea
• West Nile
• Chlamydia

We are currently in the process of getting my husband set up for his physical (my fertility clinic does not do male physicals) and his blood work. After we get his results, he will need to provide a semen sample within 7 days and we will freeze it for future use.

Our plan is to start the stim process for an egg retrieval with my September cycle, with a retrieval in October. We have decided to do PGS testing on the embryos, so it will be a freeze all cycle – results usually take about three weeks. Prayers are MUCH appreciated because egg retrievals are one of the worst and most painful things I’ve ever experienced and this will be our fifth (and hopefully our last) one.

After that, we will decide when to transfer to our GC. We need time to prepare more financially for sure, but we will get there.

How am I holding up during this process? So far, I’ve been strong and overwhelmed. As many IVF cycles we have been through, I knew what to expect each time. This is all new to us, with new information, and completely new procedures. I’ve had my moments, a few, where I’ve honestly completely lost it. Comments were said to me that caught me off guard, but all we can do is keep pushing forward. With all of those surrounding us, lifting us up in prayer and giving us support, I have no doubt, our dreams will be fulfilled on this new journey.